Who Knew?
by LiliHayagame
Summary: Braig and Dilan never really got along. Who knew that words and a little push from Ansem could change it all?


Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts…

Summary: Braig and Dilan never really got along. Who knew that words and a little push from Ansem could change it all?

_**Who Knew?**_

oOo

Back then, when life was all about studying and research as Ansem's apprentices instead of striving to get back the hearts they had lost, Number II and Number III never really got along.

Dilan, Xaldin's Somebody, despised Braig because of his careless attitude, which had caused the loss of his own right eye and the failure of many important experiments and his tendency to annoy the hell out of everybody. And Braig, Xigbar's Somebody, hated Dilan mainly because of the fact that he keeps on treating him like an ill-behaved five-year old every time he screwed up despite the fact that Braig was older by three years and also because he kept siding with Even on the whole "take your studies seriously" thing.

Ansem had already tried multiple times to get the two apprentices to work together. But unfortunately, each attempt only ended in either Braig getting another scar or Dilan nursing a black eye. In the end, Ansem assigned Aeleus to stay close to Dilan and Braig in case a fight might start between them.

A full year passed with hardly any changes. All of the apprentices still stuck to their old habits of reading, studying and experimenting with the occasional meals and other necessities in between.

And of course, nothing between Dilan and Braig changed at all. And even the patient Aeleus was getting tired of having to pull them apart every time their verbal arguments escalated into fist fights.

And finally, the day came that even Fate himself decided that he'd had enough.

oOo

It was a normal day in the castle. Even was in his room studying, Ienzo and Xehanort were doing research in the library and Ansem was in his office looking through the reports his apprentices had turned in that morning.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR YOU TRIGGER HAPPY FREAK?!"

Xehanort turned to the window and looked down to see three people whose white lab coats made them easy to spot against the green grass of the castle grounds. He didn't need to look beside him to know that Ienzo was watching too. Besides, the silver haired apprentice doubted that they'd be able to concentrate anyway.

On the palace grounds, Dilan and Braig stood glaring at each other while Aeleus just stood by, preparing himself in case he needed to intervene. Braig's gun was pointed to the ground with his index finger wrapped around the trigger and Dilan's hands were clenched around two of his lances, a scratch was on his cheek where Braig's bullet had grazed it.

"WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM?! I WALK DOWN HERE TO TRAIN AND YOU SHOOT ME FOR NO REASON?!" Dilan shouted, eyes narrowing.

Braig just rolled his eyes and put his gun back into its holster "Is it too much to ask for you to stop making such a big deal out of everything I do wrong? So what if I missed the target?" he said in a bored voice shrugging at the last part.

Dilan's eyes narrowed further and his hands clenched tighter around his lances. "Are you telling me that you don't give a fuck if you accidentally shot someone just because you 'missed the target'?" He said in a shaky voice.

Braig froze, realizing the meaning behind his wrong choice of words. He was about to apologize but he quickly reminded himself exactly _who_ was in front of him, Braig plastered a small smirk on his face, forcing his voice to remain smug. "Well what kind of idiot would walk in on a gunfight? I was training so you should have stayed away. But of course" he shrugged again "I wouldn't be surprised that you didn't. With that so-called brain of yours" Braig pointed to his temple "I'm surprised as to why Master Ansem even _chose_ you as an apprentice."

Dilan was shaking at this point. His shoulders were hunched and his knuckles were white. He kept his head down so Braig couldn't see the tears that threatened to fall out. He bit his lip when Braig continued with his insults.

"Maybe it's because he felt sorry for you. After hearing the story of a boy's parents dying in a war, Master Ansem always did have a soft spot for orphans. Maybe the reason your father died was because he had the same brains as you!"

At the mention of the word 'father' and 'died', Dilan's head snapped up. He lunged at Braig with his lances poised to stab the older boy's vitals. Aeleus saw this and immediately ran to restrain the lancer before he did anything stupid. Dilan's hate-filled eyes met Braig's shocked golden ones before he exploded.

"How dare you! Who the hell do you think you are?! You think you know me?! Huh?! How dare you talk about my father like that!" Dilan struggled against Aeleus' grip, not caring about the taller man's amazing strength.

Braig stood, still shocked about Dilan's sudden outburst. He bit his lip and looked down, avoiding Dilan's eyes. He had to admit that he had gone too far that time. Braig insulted Dilan and vice versa but Braig never attempted to talk about Dilan's father. Let alone insult him. Master Ansem had told him a little about Dilan and his parents. About them dying at the previous war. Mentally, he hit himself for being such an insensitive jerk.

Braig looked up to see that Dilan now hung limp in Aeleus' hold. The larger man slowly let go of him but held on to Dilan's upper arm in case he would lash out again. When Aeleus finally deemed it safe enough to let go of Dilan completely, the lancer immediately ran off. Not towards Braig, but into the woods. Braig was about to go after him when a hand was placed on his shoulder.

"Master Ansem will need to be informed about this." Aeleus told him

Braig nodded stiffly, letting his outstretched had fall back to his side. If he was going to get in trouble for what he said, then he would probably deserve every single bit of it. He had even upset Dilan to the point of tears.

Dilan _never _cried.

oOo

Aeleus and Braig made their way to Ansem's office. Noticing the confused looks on Ienzo's and Xehanort's faces as they passed, Aeleus knew that they had seen but didn't hear much. He was thankful for that at least.

A few minutes later, the two apprentices were standing in front of their Master's door. Aeleus glanced at Braig before knocking. The sound of his fist tapping the wood echoed around the silent hallway.

When a muffled "Come in" was heard from the other side of the door, Braig pushed the doubled doors open wide enough for him and Aeleus to enter side by side. Ansem regarded them with a nod but his expression turned into that of confusion when he noticed the missing apprentice.

"Now where has Dilan gone off to?" he inquired

Having been stayed with the children for so long, he knew the signs they gave away when they were nervous, angry or sad. So the guilty look that flashed in Braig's eyes didn't go unnoticed.

Ansem turned to Aeleus and gestured to the door. The muscular apprentice nodded in understanding before patting Braig's shoulder and exiting the room, closing the door behind him.

Placing his hands on Braig shoulders, he bent down slightly to be eye level with the boy. "Tell me what happened." he said in a soft, fatherly voice.

Braig looked down, trying to avoid his teacher's searching gaze. Feeling his guilt double when he was reminded of Dilan's own eyes staring at him with hate and contempt…

It took Braig a few seconds to realize that tears were cascading down his face.

oOo

Ansem gave a small sigh as he replayed what Braig had just told him. It had been partially his fault anyway. He had told Braig about Dilan's parents in hopes that the boy would sympathize with Dilan. Looks like Braig only used the information in the opposite of what Ansem was hoping.

He looked at the boy seated across from him. His eyes were slightly red and he was quieter than normal. Other than that, he was fine. Sighing once more when he was reminded of how uncomplicated it was to train them when they were still young and naive. Their emotions being a far too trivial thing for them to truly comprehend back when they were still twelve years old.

Ansem walked around his desk and knelt in front of Braig and placed his hands once more on his shoulders.

"Braig, I must say I am disappointed in you. You misused the information I entrusted in you and used it to do harm instead of good." Braig looked away, resisting the urge to flinch. He _did_ say that he deserved any kind of punishment Master Ansem would give him, right?

"But like any mistake, any miscalculation, any error, we are given the chance to turn things right." Ansem stood up and pulled Braig to his feet, meeting Braig's eyes once more. "You have that chance. Don't waste it Braig. Don't waste that chance."

Braig's eyes remained blank for a few moments before his face broke out into a grateful smile. He nodded and walked over to the door, knowing what he needed to do. He pushed open the doors once more and turned to his master.

"Thank you, Master Ansem." He grinned before sprinting away, letting the door close shut by itself.

oOo

Braig looked around, frowning slightly. He didn't know how long he had been searching for Dilan. Braig thought about trying to call out his name and see if he would get a response. But chances are, after what happened earlier, Braig highly doubted that Dilan would be happy to see him.

More time passed but Braig still had no luck in finding Dilan. He had remembered overhearing Even complain to Ienzo during breakfast about not wanting to play hide and seek with Dilan anymore because he always ended up winning. He smiled slightly and imagined a five year old Even trying to find a five-year old Dilan's hiding place.

The thought encouraged him to move forward. He kept walking, paying little attention to his surroundings but getting a sense that he was going the right way. It was a sort of instinct that you get after being a part of the war the second you were born.

He kept walking straight ahead. Ignoring the fact that the sky was beginning to darken. Master Ansem's words pushing him forward.

"_**You have that chance. Don't waste it Braig. Don't waste that chance."**_

Suddenly, Braig stopped. He closed his eyes and breathed in the clean forest air. Braig opened his eyes and grinned triumphantly. He ran straight ahead to what looked like a huge rock. Thankful about the fact that he was interested in listening when Master Ansem discussed gravity magic, he lifted the rock with his magic and smiled sadly when he finally saw who he was looking for.

Braig gently dropped the slab of rock beside him before he hesitantly walked closer to Dilan. The younger boy was curled up, his arms wrapped around his knees and pressed against his chest with his head resting on his arms. Braig crouched down and slowly reached out and hesitantly held Dilan's hand in what he hoped was an apologetic and comforting gesture. He frowned when he felt Dilan's hand stiffen. Dilan slowly looked up at him and stood up, attempting to get away, only to realize that Braig had already tightened his grip on his hand, cutting off any means of escape.

Dilan scowled before turning to face him but not meeting his eyes. "What do you want?' he muttered

Braig loosened his grip on Dilan's hand. "I-I wanted to apologize to you." He held up his hand when he saw Dilan roll his eyes. "I know I've been an insensitive jerk, a complete asshole, a bastard…everything!" Braig raised his arm slightly to emphasize the last word.

"Master Ansem told me all about your parents an- Will you just listen to me!" he added when Dilan made an attempt to run off again. They stood facing each other, glaring.

"Master Ansem told me about your parents because he hoped I would at least sympathize with you. Believe it or not the war killed my parents too." Braig admitted staring straight into Dilan's eyes, hoping to get any kind of reaction.

"Well thanks for 'sympathizing' with me, at any rate. I really appreciate it" Sarcasm dripped from every single word and Braig resisted the urge to just knock some sense into Dilan's stubborn head.

"Listen." Dilan turned at the seriousness of his voice "I don't blame you if you never forgive me. All that bullshit I said. Its just-well…" he sighed in frustration, running a hand through his black hair. "I can't really find a word for it…all I'm saying is…I'm sorry for hurting you. I'm sorry for being so insensitive. I'm sorry for being a complete ass and I-oof!"

Braig was immediately cut off when Dilan wrapped his free arm around Braig's neck, which made Braig realize that he was still holding Dilan's other hand. Dilan pulled away a few moments later, both of them having identical pink tints on their cheeks. They both stood in comfortable silence for a while, knowing that there was nothing more that needed to be said. Braig looked up and groaned slightly upon seeing a few stars twinkle in the night sky.

"Ah great…I had trouble with this place in broad daylight. How do you expect me to find my way bay in the dark, huh?" Braig shouted to the sky

Dilan stared at him "Who are you talking to?"

Braig was still glaring at the sky "Fate." He answered simply.

By now, Dilan was starting to get really confused.

Braig turned to him, the glare turning into a grin "Fate. I mean…can't you hear him? He's laughing at us. I swear he is. The bastard…"

Dilan gave a small smile before proceeding to lead him and Braig out of the forest by the hand.

'Fate huh?' Dilan looked up in time to see a shooting star pass by 'I'll have to remember to thank you someday.'

oOo

_**End**_

Matsuri: Well it's been a wile since we last posted, huh?

Maylie: Not to mention this thing was totally random…

Matsuri: Ah well…this is our take on Xaldin and Xigbar's past lives as Braig and Dilan.

Maylie: Please notify us on any errors, OOCness and anything else that seems wrong and we'll fix it

Matsuri: Thanks and Review please!


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